Trump will always seek to shape the narrative over his actions – we must not let him

One of the ever-present dangers of the tenure of the 45th US president is allowing him to muddy the waters surrounding his behaviour

The American leader addresses reporters outside the White House (Reuters)

Donald Trump will always defend his actions one way: “I have done nothing wrong.”

The president often won’t dispute the allegations against him. This time he has even gone as far as to release documents that he believes back up his conduct in relation to his call with Ukranian president Volodymyr Zelensky. The memo about that call is now a major part of the impeachment investigation against Trump.

America’s 45th president has the right to defend himself, but the media must be careful about how this is taken into account when addressing the issue at hand. The impeachment inquiry is a good example. From the texts presented to congress by Kurt Volker, the former US special representative for Ukraine negotiations, to the details of the call with Zelensky, some elements of the scandal are turning from opinion into fact.